The Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (GNCCI) interactions with businesses indicate a gradual increase of confidence in the economy and successful debt renegotiation with external creditors.
The Chamber’s immediate past-president, Dr. Clement Osei-Amoako, attributed this growing confidence to greater fiscal space resulting from the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF)disbursement of funds as well as debt renegotiation with external creditors.
He made this assertion when delivering his opening address at the Chamber’s 48th annual general meeting (AGM) held in Accra recently.
Citing the recent reduction in monetary policy rate as a move to ease cost of credit for the private sector, Dr. Osei-Amoako admonished government to put in more measures over the short- to medium-term which maintain the growth trajectory.
“Government urgently needs to implement policies that support investment and private sector growth in the areas of manufacturing, agriculture and food production to fuel a structural transformation”.
The GNCCI AGM was held under the theme ‘Adopting sustainable business practices to promote long-term economic growth and development’.
The theme was carefully crafted in light of pressing climate and environmental challenges facing the country, particularly widespread destruction of forest reserves and water-bodies due to illegal mining (galamsey) and other unsustainable business practices.
According to Dr. Osei-Amoako, the environmental crisis not only threatens household livelihoods but also jeopardises business sustainability – as well as the premium quality placed on some Ghanaian exports, especially cocoa.
If not curbed, this destruction has potential to undermine economic gains and development achieved by the country over the past decade, noted the former GNCCI boss.
He therefore emphasised the importance of adopting sustainable business practices which not only generate profit but also protect the environment.
GNCCI’s AGM saw the Chamber’s newly elected executives’ swearing-in: headed by Stephane Miezan as President; Dr. Emelia Assiakwa as 1st Vice President; Alexander Bogney Bewong as 2nd Vice President; and Michael Kabutey Caesar as National Treasurer.
Meanwhile, the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) is optimistic about changes to the country’s Value Added Tax (VAT) system in the next administration, as they have had extensive discussions with political parties during the preparation of their manifestos.
AGI’s Chief Executive Officer, Seth Twum-Akwaboah, confirmed the Association regularly engages with political parties ahead of the up-coming elections to outline policies aimed at boosting industry.
These engagements often culminate in Memorandums of Understandings (MoU) that lay out strategies to support industry’s growth.
“We’re pleased to see that several parties have incorporated our input into their manifestos, and we look forward to collaborating with whoever forms the next government.”
Mr. Twum-Akwaboah stated that VAT reform is crucial for improving the competitiveness of local industries. Under the current system, businesses struggle to recover all the VAT paid to government.
“We can only recover 15 percent out of the 21.9 percent VAT paid to government,” he explained. The rest, he lamented, becomes a levy on businesses – undermining the VAT system’s effectiveness. For this reason, AGI maintains that the structure needs to change.
Mr. Twum-Akwaboah was speaking at the Regional AGI Annual General Meeting (AGM) and added that political parties have responded positively to AGI’s proposals, with manifestos reflecting commitments to address the VAT challenges.
The AGM was held under the theme ‘Empowering Growth: Building a Strong Workforce for Tomorrow’.
Beyond VAT, AGI also discussed initiatives to promote small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), improve access to funding for entrepreneurs and boost the export capacity of local industries.
Meanwhile, Ghanaian businesses are being urged to first align their organisational vision with their strategy to effectively mitigate Environment, Social, Governance (ESG) risks in their organisations.
This is because recent studies indicate that over 70% of companies globally are now exposed to moderate to high ESG risks. These risks can affect a business’s reputation, financial performance and long-term sustainability.
Additionally, ESG presents opportunities such as enabling businesses to grow and innovate with new products and services, making it attractive to businesses leaders.
The Environmental, social and governance (ESG) protocol is a framework used to assess an organisation’s business practices and performance on various sustainability and ethical issues.
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